Investigations of the structure of a-C:H films

Abstract Amorphous hydrogenated carbon films were prepared in an inductively-coupled 13.56 MHz r.f.-glow discharge. The C 2 H 2 pressure varied between 4 × 10 −4 mbar and 8.2 × 10 −3 mbar. The average ion energies were in the range of about 30–350 eV. The films were characterized by measuring the hardness, stress, density and hydrogen content. Additional investigations were made by visible ion spectroscopy-infrared spectroscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy and electron diffraction. Magnetic resonance methods like 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance and electron spin resonance have been used to determine the ratio of sp 2 - to sp 3 -hybridized C atoms and the spin density.